Srinagar, May 09: While the stress in uniform has played havoc with the confidence of troops, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is also facing an increasing attrition of scientists, apparently due to attractive incentive in private sector.

A total of 747 scientists have resigned from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in the last three years alone.

However, under fire from the opposition, the UPA government in New Delhi today told the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India's bicameral parliament, that the attrition rate of scientists from DRDO was only marginally higher than that in the private sector industries.

In 2006, the attrition grew to 225 Grade B, 77 Grade C, 15 Grade D and two each for Grade E and F while one in Grade G.

Defence Minister A K Antony in a written reply to Mahmood A Madani and Santosh Bagrodia in Rajya Sabha today said that the maximum exodus of scientist was in the field of Computer Science and Electronics mainly from System Laboratories, like Gas Turbine Research Establishment (44 resignations), Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (91 resignations), Research Centre Imarat (50 resignations), Advanced Systems Laboratory (41 resignations), Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (46 resignations), Defence Electronics Research Laboratory (31 resignations), Armament Research and Development Establishment (18 resignations) in the last three years.

The government said that the scientists who had resigned had indicated personal and domestic ground as the reason for leaving DRDO. However, it was assumed that an increased opportunity available in the private sector industries was the major reason of such exodus.

The government also decided it would come up with a proposal for giving incentives to the scientists in the Sixth Central Pay Commission by DRDO for retaining the talent.